AMPHAR

CeeDee Lambe TD over Hilton is just another installment of Lou getting his ass handed to him. Perfect example of how Lou is constantly beat via formation. What CB in the league would win that matchup vs an elite WR with no bump or safety help? The Cowboys clearly had a good guess of what coverage would be dialed up and put CeeDee in a spot that would beat any elite CB the majority of the time.

Kliff Kingsbury is the only guy I'd go after IF a change was were to be made. I wouldn't fuck around with Vrabel that couldn't get a team he built past the Chiefs/Bills/Bengals. Vrabel is unlikely to get the max out of Burrow/Chase. Screams Marvin Lewis in the playoffs.

Burrow and Chase would be a factor. Assuming that contract gets done. Its all about getting the most out of those two. So I'd automatically strike a line through any name that wasn't offensive focused. If Burrow has Zac's back, IMO you don't even approach the subject until next year.

Last year the Pittsburgh Steelers rolled into Cincinnati and broke some streak of not gaining 400 yards. A few weeks later the Vikings roll into town with some dude and he had a career day. Lou sold a bunch of bullshit that it was ALL Dax Hill's fault. Media bought into it much the same they thought Mixon was an issue. Bunch of clowns. A year later Russell Wilson comes into Cincinnati and set a career mark then the next week looks average at best at home vs. the Browns. Team's know what he is running and what route combos work best against his communications/coverage adjustments. His 2023/2024 level of defense achievement is near his 2019/2020 level. Ass horrible, IMO. 2021/2022 are the outliers and not really great season long defenses. He had a handful of great playoff/key games. Believe what you want. But the question is IF you believe its front office and talent. Why or how can you justify giving Lou another 3/4 new bodies and think something is going to change? Do both. Bring in new bodies AND let someone new coach them. I wouldn't waste another season on hoping Lou can create a defense worthy enough to compliment the offense.

There are multiple games in which the offense had too go for it on 4th and short. For fear the defense couldn't stop the other team. To double down, they had to throw the ball because they simply are not moving people off the ball. These failed plays cost them in two loses. Then they are on the wrong side of officiating this year. Have no idea why but its clear. These issues have cost them. Is it excuses for it all? I'd say it covers a lot of it. Its certainly not a stretch to make a case for being 7-3 or 8-2. The biggest blunder from front office is letting Mixon go which oddly enough was a popular move among Bengal fans. But yeah the front office failed the team? Some fans want to relive the 90s so bad.

What are you talking about? Half his starters were drafted by other teams. All have played better under him and other teams than they have this year. Lou's defenses ranked poorly with Jessie Bates. He just simply isn't getting it done. Rankin, Hill, Hendrickson, Hilton, Bell, Stone. Somehow adding these guys is football roster malpractice. WTF? Lou was going to be run out of town IF not for 2021 and 2022 that were average ranked defenses that included some great individual games. Thanks for that but its time to move on. You can't keep a defensive coordinator that scape goated safeties, give him safeties he loved the next year and still suffer the same fundamental break downs this team has. When you have a bad coach somehow they'll never have enough talent to succeed. Your handing him proven NFL starters and he fails with them and the conclusion he just needs more. Get his ass out of here, period end of story.

Fans that want to be stuck in the 90s will always be stuck there. Can't help them. However, its amazing the mental gymnastics that are done to convince themselves its 1999. Lol. 1st, yes there is plenty of evidence to justify moving on from Lou. He has legit NFL players on his unit. Is it enough to be ranked top 5? No. To carry a team? No. There's plenty of evidence to justify moving on from Pollack. He has legit NFL players on his unit. He probably actually has enough talent to have a top 10 line. However, its clear the offensive play calling has to be done with an assumption the D isn't stopping anyone in critical times and the line can't gain short yardage. I don't even know what the debate about is on message boards. Lou's defense SUCKED before the playoff runs. It has SUCKED after. To think he wasn't happy about the players they brought in is pure HINDSIGHT bullshit. Geno Stone was celebrated in some spots as the FA best move. Lou is a secondary coach and can't get 1st/2nd rounders to play better. These guys were all drafted in the range most thought or even considered steals. The days of giving Dick Lebeau Artrell Hawkins as your No. 1 CB for years are long gone.

Lou is a big problem. He's a secondary guy and he's had talent in that secondary from the start. He's always given up yards since being here. All that's happening now is he isn't getting the stops he got during his run that had media folks fawning over him as the next HC. He's not a Dick Lebeau. While all those dudes are gone they are replaced with high draft picks and Free Agents he favored. Lou is a huge problem.

Off topic: LSU gets to have a live Tiger on the sidelines. Must be nice to be a tiger.

Its hard for me to understand the Mike Brown crying. Sounds very Clevelandish with these very real situations. You can choose to believe Pat Mahomes could get hit in the head twice IN the same drive and not get one called. But I'd say the refs missed a bad face mask in a Vikings game resulting a loss. They clearly missed a Crosby late hit on Burrow and missed another in the latest Ravens game. Bengals are not getting these calls. Of course they choose to throw the flag on 4th and 16 in KC and somehow keep them in their pocket when a TE gets mugged at the LOS on a 2 point conversion. This was predictable and you can read as much in the KC post game thread. Sure you can be that fan that assumes it all evens out AND I don't blame officiating. OK, whatever. The law of averages have been against the Bengals so far this season IF you want to go that route. Does anyone really debate the chances of victory in key games this year have not been influenced by bad officiating? Anyone? Point being they could have 2 wins vs. the AFC top with a simple flip of ref calls. That's not a talent issue. That's typical NFL shit because they have SHIT officiating with a shit rule book. Which is nothing new at all. Its a decade long problem. Then a 3rd win was lost because a missed FG by a playoff MVP. Should they have not drafted Money Mac? Would he be unemployed if not for the Bengals? Same with Chase Brown. Bad fumble. Are the Bengals the only team that would roster and play him? Same theme, Lou has shit the bed with his ability to get these guys playing even. 2 halves you can hang with the Ravens. 2 2nd halves they can't. Lou used to be the opposite. There's some moves that haven't worked out so the front office isn't free and clear but its normal NFL error rate. I think its a talented team that choke in some points and others flat out got screwed by the refs. The 1999 team was not a few plays or bad calls away from being in contention for No. 1 seed. Fans are letting their emotions get the best of them and in part allowing the NFL to get away with a bad product.

1999? LOL. Nah, not buying any of that fan crying bullshit. There's plenty of changes for the better with this organization. This team is talented had some on field breakdowns from coaches and proven players. Refs have hurt them more this year. Injuries seem to be normal. IF you want to cry in your beer and wallow in your misery over something YOU CHOOSE to be a fan of.....at least choose a better year. I'd go with 1987. Talented team in 1987. Just a bunch of stuff going wrong at the wrong time turning a close win into a close loss. 1999 couldn't come close to anything post Marvin, sorry. That's a bad take.

Good luck to both the Anderson's on the ballot. Both are deserving and it would be a great summer to get both in the HOF the same year.

Not a whole lot of complaints from me. They have 3 solid road wins. `1 was taken away from them in KC, IMO. Need to notch that first home win this week. Really only concern is the Defense has given the offense at least 1 short field (sometimes multiple) in the last 4 games and I don't think they've scored a point from it. I'd have to check the Panthers game. But Ravens game cost them a win. Giants/Browns cost them more comfortable wins. 2 were FG misses. 1 Moss put the ball on the ground. I think a couple were sacks taken.

I will also say its amazing how many PIs the Bengals don't get. By the letter of the law the ones called on the Bengals secondary can be defended. However there a now a handful of instances of that same degree of officiating has not gone the other way. The picking up the flag vs. Browns is mind numbing. A the closest ref didn't throw a flag with a clear attempt to impeded the receiver because he was beat. The far side ref makes the call. Then I assume the closest ref over ruled. Criminal, IMO.

The biggest issue from the last 3 weeks is multiple times the Defense has handed the offense short fields either via TO or 4th down stop and they seemingly have come away with 0 points. Either missed FGs, TOs or whatever. Other than that it was a solid win, IMO.

Modell Law isn't an issue. The reality is any new ownership group to get approved will have to have a stadium plan. So if that is some Public entity they will need that money which is half a billion to 3 billion. Then they will need probably 6 or 7 billion to buy the team. That's before any legal issues. The bigger issue and fight will be the sin tax money. City already saying its theirs. But I'm sure county will fight that.

Riverfront probably could have lasted with a renovation. We'll never know because Marge/Brown didn't see eye to eye on the value of stadium clubs, luxury boxes etc. Also the days of MLB/NFL teams sharing stadiums was quickly going away. So the county used the Bengals immediate threat to usher in a new Reds stadium as well.

Browns are leaving Cleveland....again! Dome in area know as Brookpark out by the airport.

County can sell whatever it wants to Joe Public. The Bengals are probably like this is all we need for now. I can fully understand why they don't get caught in the dome request because in order to get all the glitz and glam events there are several major hurdles which are airport (County can't ever fix that), Hotels (there isn't a State fair, KY Derby or Indy 500 every year to spurn investment), Convention Center, and Coliseum (should get X or UC to commit their seasons down there). County sells the dome on the backs of the Bengals and doesn't do a good enough job in all the other factors then it becomes a political football. Hello Todd Opertune (RIP).

Edit

Looks like Chubb will make his return. Not real excited by that. Need to put up some points to take the ball out of his hands.

Hilarious! Did he call Daniel Jones, "Dr. Jones" one time? Also, did he block one of those FGs?

I'd think you'd have to knock down Paycor and start over. Lucas Oil connects to the convention center. Patrons can walk from convention floor to the 50 yard line underground through one of the endzones in about 10 minutes. Although, I don't think they'll ever get another Superbowl in Indy. Their set up was great. Lucas Oil is versatile. Cincinnati and a dome? I think they'd have to include massive plans for Convention Center/Hotel space. Connect it to the riverfront, because that's the best thing Cincinnati has over Indy, IMO. They'd also need to have a solution for the Coliseum. All these events have some sort of fan fest/convention tied to them.

Its OBJ on Run Pass Option plays. OBJ pulling to his right, prior to the snap he's looking right and Brian Burns is creeping closer inside making the backside cut off block from the TE harder or almost impossible. (One Gesicki and the other Sample). One Joe gave the ball and resulted in a loss. The other Joe pulled the ball and was completed pass down to the 2. Burns blew the one play up 4 yard loss and was close to blowing the other up but Joe got the ball out.

There's other issues that are big factors to make a dome a smart move, IMO. The people of Cincinnati always overlook reality. They are surrounded by better cities in terms of big event hosts. Indy has a ton of other events that boost their hotel and airport. Louisville does too. Nashville. When your talking big events that make a dome worth it. Its hard to get past CVG and its state post Delta. The lack of hotels. Then the convention center. These are big issues to consider before dropping more money on a dome. Not impossible but it'd be hard luring the Big 10 champ game out of Indy. Cincinnati will never have the KY derby month or Indy 500 2 months, state fairs and other stuff that make the investment in massive hotel expansion worth it completely. Although there are some new ones planned in NKY.